


i'm warm and terrified, she makes me so

by liquidnitrogen



Category: Parks and Recreation
Genre: Drinking, F/F, First Kiss, Implied Sexual Content, ann and april are like the same age because i make the rules, fluff mostly, miscommunication sort of
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-26
Updated: 2021-01-26
Packaged: 2021-03-12 10:42:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,521
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29009235
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/liquidnitrogen/pseuds/liquidnitrogen
Summary: Ann and April spend the night together after a drunken night at the bar, and the two consider the implications of it.
Relationships: April Ludgate/Ann Perkins
Comments: 4
Kudos: 23





	i'm warm and terrified, she makes me so

**Author's Note:**

> hi i've never written anything for parks and rec before but since jules (sapphicpaint) helped me come up with this idea it felt important to write so enjoy !! 
> 
> (title from She Makes Me (Stormtrooper in Stilettos) by Queen)

The terrible music blared through the speakers of the club as April, almost aggressively, shoved her glass down on the bar counter, only just mistiming it with the beat of the song. The parks department had taken to this fairly small, not very well-known club to celebrate… Whatever it was that they were celebrating. Truth be told, April was not quite sure what it was, and if the reason for it was her usual aloofness or the alcohol making its way through her system, who was to say. Leslie had made a big deal about it though—as she always did—and there really hadn’t been any room for saying no, even if she wanted to.

And truth be told once again, she had wanted to. She wasn’t exactly in the mood for partying right now, hadn’t been for a few weeks, really. Her friends had insisted that it would be good for her to get out though. For the record, she was never one to enjoy stuffy clubs and hours full of socializing—the thought made her shiver—though it had been slightly more bearable with Andy around. Now it was just her. They used to run around as the infamous Janet Snakehole and Burt Macklin without a care in the world, causing innocent trouble wherever they went. But things come and go, she supposed.

Andy was one of those things—he came and he went. When she found him she’d been happy. She felt like her life was beginning to fall into place. However, after only dating for a couple months, Andy had received this opportunity to study abroad, the opportunity to study something he actually liked nonetheless. 

Of course it had been a difficult decision, whether to try long distance, have April leave everything and come along or simply just end it. Option one seemed tricky and option two was out of the question. They didn’t want to end things, it had never been a part of their plan. Sure, most people don’t give their relationships an expiration date, but this one still felt special. When envisioning their futures, the other person always managed to creep in. 

“Hey, April.”

She didn’t give much of a reaction at first. The voice beside her felt like it was coming from another galaxy, far away and unimportant. Like a tiny star inside the nebula of irritating sounds all blending together. Perhaps it was the alcohol after all. 

“April.”

This time she was shaken from her thoughts. The voice was Ann, she could hear it more clearly now. It may have had something to do with the fact that she was practically yelling next to April’s face at this point. 

“Yes?” She replied, semi-distantly, only barely looking up at Ann. 

“I just came to check on you,” she leaned down slightly in an attempt to make some eye contact, “you’ve kinda been sitting here, all night, talking to no one.”

“Yeah? Your point?” April shrugged. 

“I’m worried about you, that’s all,” Ann spoke gently, not sure if placing a comforting hand on her shoulder was warranted. 

“Don’t be,” she picked up her glass, noticing that there was no longer anything in it. She gave the bartender a lazy wave indicating a refill as she slid the glass over the counter. The two of them sat in silence, watching the alcohol filling up. 

“April, I know you’re bummed about Andy leaving but—”

“But what? I’m totally fine. Maybe you’re bummed. God, if you love him so much why don’t you just marry him.” April muttered and her tone was fully dripping with sarcasm. The bartender placed her drink back in front of her and she gladly picked it up, taking a big swig before returning zero attention to Ann and choosing instead to focus on a rather interesting spot of wood on the counter. 

“I’m only trying to be nice to you,” Ann frowned, “and you’re not making it very easy. Please just tell me what I can do for you.”

“Hmm,” April put on her best pondering look, “You could—”

“I’m not going to leave you alone,” Ann interjected and April looked down again, pursing her lips. 

“Please do. Everything is garbage and it sucks, I don’t feel like talking to people.”

“April… You dated for three months. It’s been weeks, you need to start moving on,” Ann offered.

“Okay,” she said, not convinced, “how long did you and Chris go out again?”

Ann narrowed her eyes, “Fine.”

“And how long did it take you to get over him?”

“I get it.”

“Didn’t you dye your hair?”

“Alright, god.” 

April gave a small smirk, mainly because of the fact that Ann’s unfortunate dating life made her feel the slightest bit better. She did appreciate her trying to help—secretly, somewhere in the dark depths of her subconscious—but her brain didn’t quite register that right now. Instead it was twisted into something annoying and unbearable that wouldn't let her just _feel_ her feelings. 

“I just think you’d feel better if you… Maybe met someone else,” Ann suggested.

April just glared at her friend. Someone else? Was she crazy? It had only been a few weeks. “You can’t be serious,” she laughed a bit incredulously. 

“I’m fully serious,” her friend replied, “it would be good for you. You never know when you’ll meet the right person.” She leaned down possibly even further onto the counter, head still turned to where April was sitting beside her. She had this strange glint in her eye. It almost looked… Mischievous or daring in a way. 

“I already did,” April groaned, “there’s no one else like him.” 

“I think it defeats the point if they’re _like him_ ,” Ann moved a bit closer.

“I don’t care.”

“It’ll only make it harder,” once again she decreased the distance between them. If April noticed, she said nothing of it. 

“Whatever.”

“I’m trying to help you.”

“Shut up,” April snarled. They were merely inches apart. Sharp breaths, smelling of alcohol, were released between them. Their eyes were locked together in a sort of strange staring contest. Except it wasn’t a game. It was as if they were searching each other's gazes, trying to find a signal or a cue. Ann squinted her eyes, if only slightly, and gave April an inquisitive look.

With no words said, April leaned forward and captured Ann’s lips, answering her unspoken question. It wasn’t like kissing Andy—neither physically nor emotionally—she’d expected that and yet it was still a complete shock. She was much smoother, softer, than he was, and for a kiss that seemed to hold so much pent up frustration, she was surprisingly gentle. It was _exhilarating_. 

Somewhere in the distance she thought she could hear Leslie’s astonished screams but they were a bit too blurry to pay any mind to. All April could seem to focus on was Ann. Maybe she had been right—maybe this was what she needed. She would never admit that though, never in a million years. 

~.~.~

The first thing April noticed when she woke up was the immediate buzzing that formed in her head. She rolled onto her side and took a deep breath, trying to rub the pain out of her temples. However, much to her dismay, the headache remained. The second thing she noticed was that she was not, in fact, in her own house. The sheets smelled of freshly washed cotton and they felt like heaven itself. After blinking away the dizziness to the best of her ability, she saw the wallpaper, the dresser, the pile of clothes folded neatly upon the chair next to the door. This was _definitely_ not her house. Did Leslie drive her home to her place? It made sense, she was the most considerate person April knew. Big flaw in that theory though; Leslie’s house looked like an actual dumpster. This room was tidy, tidier than anything she’d seen before, yet still so beautifully ornate. This was Ann’s house. 

Fuck. 

She dared to turn her eyes to the other side of the bed where, sure enough, the soft, brown hair was sticking out from underneath from the covers. There must have been an innocent explanation for this. April was drunk, Ann took her home with her and put her to bed because she was—she shivered—a good friend. Her attempts to convince herself of this grew futile as the memories of last night started slowly coming back. Flashes of the bar, the drunk giggles and the roaming hands as they made it inside the safety of the house. April felt her face drain of color and her breath start to quicken. She had to get out of here. 

As quietly as she could, she slid out of the bed, careful not to wake her friend—if she should even call her that—on the other side. She noticed that her clothes were lying on the floor next to the bed, because of-fucking-course they were. Swiftly, she picked them up and shot a final look to the bed, making sure it was safe, before making her way towards the door. 

April wasn’t quite sure what to make of this whole situation. This was new, uncharted territory, with her friend nonetheless. It was all too much to handle in this hangover haze and she knew for sure that she could not stick around and wait for Ann to wake up. The thought of having to sit at her table, eating her probably delicious breakfast and having an honest to god conversation about what happened—it made her nauseous. She needed to think about this on her own. 

As far as she was concerned, she did not regret the events that occured—it _had_ been a hell of a night for all she could remember—but the implications of it; what was to come next? Where did this leave them both? April supposed she’d always known there had been somewhat of a… Something that she felt towards Ann, something she tried to push down and ignore. So April liked her, sure, but did that mean she should just rush headlong into that feeling? There was absolutely zero percent sobriety in that room last night, who’s to say it wasn’t just a drunken mistake. 

That was fine. All of this was fine. April could simply ice her out, lock her feelings deep down and ignore them forever, lord knows she was already pretty skilled in that department. 

~.~.~

Ann pulled into the driveway just as she would any morning. However this time she was, approximately, 95% more caffeinated. Everything about the previous night was a complete blur and despite this growing feeling in her gut that something was off, something that she could not place, she decided to shrug it off as best as she could. In her current state she had no intentions of purposefully putting her brain through trying to figure that out.

She got out of her car and walked towards the city hall, just as she always did. Once inside she shared a few polite smiles and nods with her coworkers as they passed by. Everything was fine. Whatever feeling she’d had earlier had begun fading away. It was probably just the hangover. She continued towards the parks department and suddenly saw something which made her stop dead in her tracks. 

It was April, standing at the end of the corridor, looking like a deer in headlights. Oh. _Oh_. 

Everything immediately came rushing right back and Ann felt like she could faint right then and there. It wasn’t that she regretted anything—absolutely not, not even close—but it was just that. She’d liked April for a while now, how could she even begin to talk to her like this, especially with April looking like she could quite literally turn into dust if Ann came any closer. 

“April…” She tried, hesitantly. 

“I’ve got to… Bye,” April fired back and quickly disappeared around the corner. 

Not the time, Ann noted. Obviously this was a strange situation for April, she could see that, so she supposed she would just have to give her some time, even if that meant harboring her stress like a freaking balloon that could burst at any given moment. 

And she did wait, she gave April all day. A few times she’d attempted to very carefully get closer, let her know that she was not a threatening presence. April had always found a way to excuse herself. Not only that, but it was almost as if she was acting even colder and more apathetic than usual. 

To be honest, it made Ann pretty antsy. She thought it was a mistake. April didn’t see it the way she did. There was a tiny voice creeping in her mind, reminding her that she had not been the one to make the first move. Though that voice was easily drowned out by the hundreds of anxiety-ridden thoughts that flew around in her mind. 

She sighed as she gathered her things from her desk, shot a quick text to Leslie that she was leaving, and headed for the door. When she made it out into the corridor again she saw the familiar figure of her friend walking quickly towards the exit. This was her chance. Ann increased her pace slightly, trying to catch up. 

“April!” She found her mouth yelling, not fully with the permission of her brain.

April turned around and she froze as she saw Ann approaching, though she made no attempt to run away this time. 

“What?” She replied blankly. 

“You’ve been… We just, we need to talk,” she cringed. Nothing quite as terrifying as those four words. 

April said nothing. 

“Okay… Why have you been avoiding me? Do you think it was a mistake?” Ann asked carefully. 

April stood silent for a few seconds. She looked away and focused her eyes on something, anything other than Ann, “no,” she responded quietly. 

“No?”

“No, I don’t know, leave me alone,” she began walking again, but was stopped by Ann’s hand gently grabbing her wrist. 

“Hey, wait!” She turned around, “you don’t? Then what’s this all been about?” Ann looked at her patiently, not angrily.

“I don’t know, it’s confusing. All of it. I might like you and that’s weird and gross because I hate everyone,” April deadpanned. 

Ann chuckled in response, “you like me?”

“No. Who told you that, I’ve never said that in my life.”

“Sure, sure,” Ann smirked.

“Shut up.” 

“That’s not what you said last night,” Ann teased.

“I hate you,” April muttered.

“Yeah, I know.”

Suddenly voices started coming from within the parks department, they were getting closer too. Ben and Leslie, Ann deduced. 

“You hear that?” She whispered, “if you want to keep any ounce of this private we’re gonna have to run.”

Without a word April grabbed Ann’s hand and fully sprinted towards the exit. Sure enough, Ben and Leslie stepped into the corridor, witnessing the two running alongside one another, sharing hushed giggles. 

“What’s that about?” Ben gave Leslie a confused look.

“Gay people,” she nodded wisely. He hummed in agreement.


End file.
